North America

ANYWAVES, the European equipment manufacturer announced on the 23rd of March that they have signed a contract with Maxar Technologies, an American company specialising in manufacture of telecommunication, Earth observation and other related services. 

The National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) has awarded six study contracts for commercial hyperspectral imagery (HSI). Companies receiving awards under NRO’s Strategic Commercial Enhancement’s (SCE) Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) Framework, include BlackSky Technology, HyperSat, Orbital Sidekick, Pixxel, Planet, and Xplore.

In light of Virgin Orbit's pause operations amidst financial uncertainties, the Launch Company will partly resume operations after nearing a $200 million deal with Venture capital firm Matthew Brown Companies. According to Reuters, the Texas-based company will prevent Virgin Orbit's rocket from bankruptcy via a private share placement. 

Firefly Aerospace, Inc. an American end-to-end space transportation company, has been awarded a $112 million NASA contract to deliver multiple lunar payloads in 2026. This is Firefly’s second task order won under NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) initiative. The company will use its Blue Ghost spacecraft in a two-stage configuration to place a satellite into lunar orbit and then deliver two research payloads on the far side of the Moon.

The White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) has released the Biden-Harris Administration’s priorities to advance a vision for America’s continued global leadership in aeronautics. Federal aeronautics experts, with input from leaders across academia, non-profit, and commercial sectors, developed the National Aeronautics Science and Technology Priorities. The priorities outline activities to maintain the nation’s edge, both in the global aeronautics industry and in national security applications, which requires focus and investment today.

Two C-band Northrop Grumman Corporation satellites have successfully launched. The launch will enable SES to achieve another milestone of the Federal Communications Commission’s program to clear C-band spectrum to enable wireless operators to deploy 5G services across the U.S. (CONUS) and to continue delivering uninterrupted TV, radio, and critical data transmission services to millions of Americans.

Virgin Orbit has paused its operations and furloughed its staff for at least a week in the event of recent financial challenges. According to a statement the Company released on March 15, Virgin Orbit said it was instituting an “operational pause” across the company, which includes furloughing staff. A Company spokesperson stated that the launch vehicle company is initiating a company-wide operational pause, effective March 16, 2023, and anticipates providing an update on go-forward operations in the coming weeks. 

In the third episode, Namrata and Emma will discuss the rise of the Chinese Space industry. From the projects for an independent Moon base to their progress in every sector of the space tech and military domain, China’s declared ambition is to become the strongest world power in 50 years from now, and space is one of their main tools to reach such a goal.

Axiom Space has revealed the prototype spacesuit astronauts will wear during NASA’s Artemis III mission. NASA selected the company to develop the modern suits and the prototype was revealed on the 15th of March during an event at Space Center Houston in Texas. 

Aalyria and Rivada Space Networks (RSN) have entered into an agreement to use Aalyria’s Spacetime platform to orchestrate the network for Rivada’s planned LEO constellation. Rivada’s constellation will consist of 600 satellites interconnected via laser links. As a result, the solution will offer integrated core and edge connectivity over a single, global private network in space. The first satellite launch is set for 2025, with global service starting in 2026.